War Of Miseries
The War of Miseries (Greek: Αθλιος Πόλεμος; Latin: Miseram Bello; Persian: جنگ با شکوه) was the first conflict between the Eastern Roman Empire and the newly formed Khorasanid Empire of Iran, taking place between 826 and 835 and ending in a crushing Byzantine defeat. What had started as a near-unopposed march through Mesopotamia against the collapsing Sassanids rapidly became a rout as the initial army, now carrying bubonic plague, was recalled to Alexandria to defend it against a rebellion in Egypt. Khosrau, soon to become Khosrau III of Khorasanid Persia, forged an alliance with the invasing Oghuz and managed to drive the plague-ridden and weak Romans back, capturing Egypt, the Levant, and much of Anatolia. Meanwhile, the Romans lost nearly half of their territory, including the remainder of the Levant, much of Anatolia, and Egypt, lost two emperors along with much of the royal family to plague, and increasingly turned away from traditional Hellenism and toward Buddhism. Background In 802, the Sassanid Empire, taking advantage of a succession crisis, launched a surprise attack against the Byzantines, gaining Palestine and Transjordan and splitting the Empire in half in the process. The prevailing emperor, Kornelios I, was already on bad terms with the Persians upon coronation and bided his time. His time to strike came in 826, when Kavadh III unexpectedly died with sixteen children and no heir declared. At the same time, seeing this instability, the Oghuz Turks to their north, facing pressure from repeated incursions from the Tang Dynasty of China, rushed southward to conquer the Empire before it could recentralize. Seeing his opportunity, Kornelios declared war. Initial Phase With Kavadh's children all either in open rebellion or working for different factions and the Turks bearing down on them from the North, defense against the Romans fell to Khosrau of the House of Khorasan, the acting commander of the West, who would eventually become the first shahanshah of the Khorasanid dynasty. Although he did defend valiantly, surprising even enemy commanders with his performance, he was woefully undermanned and underequipped, with most of the army fighting for different claimants to the throne. The Romans had entered Ctesiphon by the end of 827, driving the royal court out, and continued south toward the mouth of the Tigris and Euphrates, aiming to annex all of Mesopotamia. En route, they stopped in the city of Basra for the night. However, in the morning, a rider came to the army with orders to march to Alexandria at full speed. A rebellion had broken out in Egypt. However, unbeknownst to the Romans, Basra had recently been quarantined due to a particularly deadly strain of Yrsinia Pestis. None of the locals showed symptoms anymore, but many were still carriers. By the time the first soldiers started to cough up blood, they were in Alexandria. The Plague Of Cornelius With Alexandria being one of the most prosperous trade cities on the Mediterranean, the plague spread like wildfire across Eastern Rome. Constantinople saw 1 in 3 of its inhabitants die, and every major city in the empire was affected. When the initial army was recalled to Alexandria, Kornelios raised a new one and marched through Anatolia to finish what he'd started. However, when they reached Cappadocia, plague swept through their ranks, causing the deaths of half of the army, including Kornelios himself. His young son, Justinian III, swore to finish his father's work upon coronation. He gathered the remaining troops of the first army and what healthy reserves were left. The army did win a pyrrhic victory at Aleppo in early 829, but Justinian was badly wounded and sent to Konya to recover. He promptly contracted the plague and died. His son, the 6-year-old Kornelios II, was sent to live in a monastery 30 miles outside of Adrianople to prevent him from having the same fate, with a regency council ruling in his stead. Whether this was a ploy by members of the court to increase the standing of Buddhism or a genuine act of desperation is still debated by historians. In any case, it was certainly a factor in him naming Buddhism as the official religion of the empire as a young adult in 844. Khosrau's Ascent With the fall of Ctesiphon and Mesopotamia, Khosrau faced a choice: either lead a protracted war of defense, now doomed to failure as unity still could not be obtained, or switch sides and approach the Oghuz court, as the only Persian with real power, to negotiate a united front against the Romans. He chose the latter option, and arrived in late 628 with tales of Roman wealth and supplies, especially in the lightly defended Egypt. He also said that he had managed to perform relatively well even with an overwhelming numerical disadvantage, and that the Persian and Turkish armies, united under him, would crush the Romans and bring glory to the Oghuz Khan. Khosrau received a frosty reception at first, but he persisted. Eventually, word reached the Oghuz Khan of the Roman plague and instability, and he accepted readily in 629. Khosrau would eventually use this position to overthrow the Turks and establish himself as Khosrau III of Khorasanid Persia, but for now, with Persian and Turkish armies now united, it was time to take vengeance on the Romans. Khosrau's conquests followed a cycle of decaying Roman armies being destroyed on the field and Roman cities throwing open their gates due to high taxes and weak garrisons. He likely would have continued all the way to Constantinople, had he not finally been bested in the field at Antalia in 435 and agreed to peace. Byzantine Victories Mosul (826) - First Persian army sent to halt the Romans shattered Tikrit (827) - Persians allied with local defenders manage a draw, but are still forced to retreat Ctesiphon (827) - Persians buy enough time for the royal court to flee to Isfahan, but are still defeated Nasiria (828) - Khosrau fails to force the Romans from their warpath down the Euphrates because of the treason of one of his sub-commanders Aleppo (829) - Pyrrhic Roman victory causes Khosrau to decide against marching on the vulnerable and disease-ridden Constantinople for the time being, instead turning south, toward Egypt First Battle of Aswan (832) - Local Nubian defenders manage to drive off the Persians sent after them, but make little strategic difference Antalia (835) - Last stand from a local garrison, levied subjects, and a small army manage causes such losses that Khosrau stops his warpath to Constantinople and accepts a subsequent offer of peace Sassanid/Oghuz Victories Tigris Skirmishes (826-827) - A series of guerilla victories against exposed portions of the Roman army that make little strategic difference Cappadocia (828) - Plague-ridden army under Kornelios I fails to aid local garrisons, who are routed Acre (829) - Justinian III's army, now in control of his sub-commanders and shrinking, is crushed after their victory at Aleppo Alexandria (830) - Miniscule local garrison attempts last stand against both the Oghuz and rioting Alexandrians, but are all killed Cairo (830) - Local governor attempts a defense with Egyptian levies, but, with the memory of the recent revolt still fresh, he is betrayed and his head is presented to Khosrau Memphis (831) - Egyptians, now openly backing the Turks, assist them in crushing both the remaining Roman garrisons and many of the Nubian militias fighting for Rome due to ethnic tensions Second Battle of Aswan (832) - Remaining Nubians lured in and decimated by the main Oghuz force. Egypt is now effectively under Turkic control Adana (833) - New legions created by the regency council prove only slightly less prone to desertion and betrayal than those of Kornelios I and Justinian III as Khosrau wheels back into Anatolia Konya (834) - The already bested Romans' morale melts away as the tomb of Justinian III is discovered and raided.